Help! I been robbed!
That’s how today’s classic song of the day starts out. The song is “Stick Up” by Honey Cone, released in August of 1971, and it went all the way to #11 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #1 on Billboard’s R&B chart.
“Stick Up” was written by General Johnson, Angelo Bond, and Greg Perry. Right out of the gate, the trio didn’t think it was strong enough to be a single, so they reworked it, both musically and lyrically, into the song “Want Ads.” That track became a #1 single, so they released the similar-sounding “Stick Up” as the follow-up.
Honey Cone consisted of three singers, Carolyn Willis, Edna Wright (wife of Greg Perry), and Shelly Clark (wife of Earth, Wind & Fire’s Verdine White). They first got together in 1966 out in Los Angeles and were eventually signed to Hot Wax, one of the labels formed by Eddie Holland, Lamont Dozier, and Brian Holland (AKA Holland-Dozier-Holland AKA H-D-H) after they left Motown.
And, for your viewing pleasure, here’s Honey Cone on the October 2, 1971, episode of Soul Train, lip-synching their latest it, “Stick Up.” This was the premiere national episode of Soul Train; before this, it was just a local Chicago show on station WCIU.
